Water

Jiangsu province’s wetlands area—about 4 million hectares (ha) or 39% of Jiangsu’s total area— is one of the biggest coastal wetlands in Asia. Roughly 70% of these coastal wetlands are located in Yancheng municipality in northern Jiangsu. Yancheng is home to two important biodiversity reserves, the National Nature Reserve for Rare Birds (YNNRB) and the Dafeng Milu (David’s Deer) National Nature Reserve (DMNNR), providing important ecosystem services.

Yancheng’s wetlands face land reclamation and conversion, roads and dikes constructions, introduction of alien plant and animal species, and increasing pollution. These threats have significantly affected the wetlands’ ecology and hydrology. This PDA will support a biodiversity research study that aims to understand the linkages between agriculture and fisheries, which is critical for achieving both developmental and conservation goals in the wetlands.

• Better informed strategies for managing the impacts of agriculture and aquaculture at the site level based on an understanding of impacts, drivers, and tradeoffs
• Better understanding of the respective contributions of agriculture and aquaculture to local livelihoods
• Additional resources available to ADB and other stakeholders for future dialogue with government agencies regarding national and regional conservation and development policies and options
• Increased knowledge-base for managing agriculture-wetlands-poverty reduction challenges

• Proposal (February 2008) [ PDF ]